Boulder Drenched by 'Proverbial 100-Year Flood'

A third person has died as floods continue to ravage northern Colorado, driving some 4,000 people out of Boulder late yesterday. Rainfall in the city has obliterated a 73-year record, with 12.3 inches falling since Sept. 1—compared to 5.5 in September 1940. Floodwater is pouring from neighboring Boulder Canyon, Reuters reports. "There's so much water coming out of the canyon, it has to go somewhere, and unfortunately it's coming into the city," says an official. The Denver Post shares these jarring numbers: Boulder Creek typically flows at between 100 and 300 cubic feet per second; it hit 4,500 cfs this week.

Further, a rep for the US Geological Survey says there was just a 1% chance Boulder would see a storm like this in a year, "meaning the storm is a proverbial 100-year flood," writes the Post. Nearby Longmont has seen 7,000 evacuated, while the National Guard brought supplies to the town of Lyons, which has been cut off from neighboring areas. Landlines and cellphones aren't working in Estes Park, where the only functioning way to communicate with the outside world is via ham radio. With rain likely to continue today, President Obama declared a state of emergency for the state last night, CNN reports. (More Colorado stories.)